I had an email from one of our mediators today asking:
"Just wondering Common Ground has ever considered at times not using co-mediators but using very well experienced and confident mediators on their own? Am thinking about that possibility in light of the influx of cases CG is currently experiencing and the fact that in the professional world of mediation there is often only one mediator if I understand right. I imagine that would be a big shift for CG, but maybe it isn't necessarily a bad idea?"
What do you think? Mediators working alone would double our capability to take cases. How important is co-mediation to you? Is it an integral part of the process for you or is finding availability for two mediators a time-consuming task that doesn't add value? I have an open mind on this question and would very much appreciate your thoughts below.
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1st thoughts: I've never mediated professionally, but I imagine if mediation was my job, I'd be up for going solo. As a volunteer, part of the draw for me is the the co-working. The learning, the sharing, the opportunity of a fresh perspective and so on. I think solo mediation in the community context would feel like a chore to me. I'd be doing in reaction to the influx of cases and because I'd let my inner rescuer take over, rather than as an opportunity to stretch or challenge myself and my practice. Kweku
ReplyDeleteI agree with Kweku on co-working being one of the attractions of volunteering as a mediator. Co-mediating provides an opportunity to learn by watching someone else and get feedback on your own style and methods. I would miss this if I was mediating alone.
ReplyDeleteFrom an organisational perspective having individual mediators making visits would require a robust process to ensure their safety while they volunteered. I think I would probably feel less safe making visits alone.
Joe
Thanks Joe and Kweku, for your thoughtful responses. Safety is, of course, a key consideration in this question and even if this was taken forward I would still view co-mediation as the default position. Have had some interesting responses very much for the idea over email - will pull them together and post them here when some more people have had a chance to comment. Thanks again for your thoughts!
ReplyDeleteDo you think there's any significance in the fact that those who've responded positively to the idea of co-mediation have done so on the communal blog and those who were interested in mediating solo emailed me direct?
ReplyDeleteThis is an interesting development! I think it is a real opportunity for us as mediators amd for Common Ground as a whole. My first thought was the saftey issue and the readiness and willingness of the parties to engage in the process of mediation. I would want better prep on all these fronts if I were to be going in solo.
ReplyDeleteIt strikes me that solo mediation can simply be brought in as an option alongside what we are already doing. There is no need to decide whether or not to make a shift from co to solo and I think it would be unhelpful to do that- we would lose out whatever was decided. I cant think of any reason why, with good safety practices in place we wouldn't make solo mediation an option, for those who would like to do it. If the mediator was ready and competant, it would be a win-win situation. A win for the mediator and for Common Ground. But what about the parties we may ask? Indeed, in mediation I think two heads are very often better than one, but the question should be; Are two heads TWICE as good as one in mediation? And, maybe more relevant- Is one head GOOD ENOUGH?
Whether or not individuals and Common Ground move to more and more solo mediation, for the interested and competant mediator, learning to mediate solo would surely enhance their mediation skills, which could be deployed either solo or in partnership.
So I would like to see this development happen. I think it would be helpful to have some kind of process in place to become a solo mediator. Some extra training, (maybe some OGTs) and some assessment or at least discussion as to readiness. One idea would be to peer assess- we turn up in pairs as usual but only one is mediating, the other merely observes (unless called to step in). There would be the opportunity afterwards for discussion reflection and feedback which would all contribute to the process of moving towards being a co mediator. This process would be a chance to bring more awareness to both our strengths and weaknesses as mediators and to develop into more rounded practitioners. Regarding training it would probably be helpful to highlight differences between co and solo mediation and identify specific skills and qualities that would be needed to successfully mediate solo.
A final thought on co mediating; it strikes me that sometimes we are paired up with people who we work really well with. We could make more of this and have a culture of developing effective partnerships. So if two people really liked working together, and worked very well together, they could work together more often and develop their skills and effectiveness as a team. Actually this too could be a good stepping off point to becoming a solo mediator.